1. Field of the Invention
The invention disclosed and claimed herein generally pertains to an apparatus and method for enabling a printer to be supplied with paper from either of two or possibly more rolls. More particularly, the invention pertains to apparatus of the about type wherein paper being supplied to the printer is automatically transferred from one roll to the other. Even more particularly, the invention pertains to apparatus of the above type wherein transfer between rolls occurs upon sensing that the roll feeding the printer is about to run out of paper.
2. Description of the Related Art
In stores and other shopping areas, it has become common to have printers located at point-of-sale (POS) terminals or locations, such as in kiosks, at check out counters, and the like. Each time a clerk or store employee rings up a sale, a computer-operated printer rapidly prepares a customer receipt, from paper contained on a roll. Customers can thereby be provided with paper records for all transactions, in a manner that is efficient and inexpensive. As a further example, printers are commonly used with paper rolls in theaters or other sites requiring admission, to print and dispense tickets.
A drawback in using printers of the above type is that paper rolls must be periodically replaced, when the paper on respective rolls runs out. In a commercial environment, it can be very inconvenient to have a printer roll run out of paper at a time of great activity, such as when numerous customers are waiting for service. A need to change printer rolls at a kiosk in a shopping mall or the like may be particularly troublesome, when there is only a single sales clerk to respond to customers, watch over merchandise and otherwise take care of business.
At present, the above situation is commonly dealt with by requiring an operator in a business establishment to be on call, in order to refill respective printers when they run out of paper. Most printers currently have paper-low and paper-empty sensors. Some even have means to send a message via Ethernet, to notify the operator to come to the printer and refill it with a new paper roll. However, if the operator comes too early, before the paper supply completely runs out, the remaining roll will be thrown away with useable paper still on it, in order to insert a new roll. On the other hand, if the operator comes too late, the kiosk or other POS location would have experienced down time during which it was not able to service customers.